Based on the aggregated intelligence of 170,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, burrito specialist Chipotle Mexican Grill
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Chipotle's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Chipotle facts
| Headquarters (Founded) | Denver, Colo. (1993) |
| Market Cap | $7.61 billion |
| Industry | Restaurants |
| Trailing-12-Month Revenue | $1.84 billion |
| Management |
Founder/Chairman/Co-CEO Steven Ells CFO John Hartung |
| Return on Equity (Average Past 3 Years) | 18.6% |
| Cash/Debt | $349.6 million / $3.78 million |
| Competitors |
McDonald's
Wendy's/Arby's
Yum! Brands |
Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's) and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 14% of the 2,650 members who have rated Chipotle believe the stock will underperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bears include mcw841 and All-Star TMFPlatoish, who is ranked in the top 1% of our community.
Earlier this month, mcw841 listed several of the stock's negatives: "Overvalued. Margins will be squeezed by soft commodity prices. Competition is also increasing."
Currently, Chipotle sports a forward P/E of 29.7. That represents a clear premium to restaurant rivals McDonald's (13.7), Wendy's/Arby's (21.9), and Yum! (15.5).
CAPS All-Star TMFPlatoish also thinks the Chipotle bear case all boils down to price:
Well conceived and managed company with blue blood fast food ancestry. It looks over-valued from a fundamentals perspective by quite a lot unless you believe it can replicate McDonald's buildout pattern. I consider that unlikely and would give it an additional discount for the potential for it to be something of a fad with limited endurance. It's a decent place to eat but nothing I'd travel far for. ... It does deserve something of a premium to its peer group, but I believe it got ahead of itself.
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